Parametric Iranian-Islamic muqarnas as drivers for design for fabrication and assembly via UAVs: parametric analysis and synthesis of Iranian-Islamic muqarnas.

Zamani, Erfan; Dounas, Theodoros

Abstract

This study proposes a DfMA (from design to assembly) based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and uses Iranian-Islamic Muqarnas as the case study due to their geometric modularity. In Islamic architecture, different geographic regions are known to have used various design and construction methods of Muqarnas. There are four main specifications of the Muqarnas that define to which category they belong; first, its three-dimensional shape, that provides volume. Secondly, the size of its modules is variable. Third, its specific generative algorithm. And finally, the 2-dimensional pattern plan that is used in the design. First, this study presents thus a global analytical study that drives a generative system to construct Muqarnas, through a careful balance of four specifications. In this second step, the paper reports the result of using a parametric tool, Grasshopper and parametric plugins, for creating a generative system of several types of Muqarnas. This synthetic translation aims at expanding our understanding of parametric analysis and synthesis of traditional architecture, advancing our understanding towards using parametric synthesis towards UAV-based fabrication of Muqarnas, by taking advantage of their inherent repetition and recursion.

Citation

ZAMANI, E. and DOUNAS, T. 2021. Parametric Iranian-Islamic muqarnas as drivers for design for fabrication and assembly via UAVs: parametric analysis and synthesis of Iranian-Islamic muqarnas. In Abdelmohsen, S., El-Khouly, T., Mallasi, Z. and Bennadji, A. (eds.). Architecture in the age of disruptive technologies: transformation and challenges: proceedings of the 9th Arab Society for Computer Aided Architectural Design 2021 (ASCAAD 2021), 2-4 March 2021, [virtual conference]. Aberdeen: Robert Gordon University, pages 436-449. Hosted on CumInCAD [online]. Available from: http://papers.cumincad.org/data/works/att/ascaad2021_050.pdf

• Conference Name: 9th Arab Society for Computer Aided Architectural Design (ASCAAD) international conference 2021 (ASCAAD 2021: architecture in the age of disruptive technologies: transformation and challenges
• Conference Location: [virtual conference]
• Start Date: Mar 2, 2021
• End Date: Mar 4, 2021
• Acceptance Date: Jan 5, 2021
• Online Publication Date: Mar 4, 2021
• Publication Date: Mar 31, 2021
• Deposit Date: Sep 9, 2021
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 9, 2021
• Publisher: Robert Gordon University
• ISBN: 9781907349201
• Keywords: Muqarnas; Iranian-Islamic architecture; Generative system; Parametric architecture; UAV
• Public URL: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/1447432
• Publisher URL: http://papers.cumincad.org/cgi-bin/works/paper/ascaad2021_050